ETHNONYMS: Achehnese, Achinese, Atchinese, Atjehnese, Ureung Aceh, Ureung Baroh, Ureung Tunong
Most Acehnese live in villages, also known as meunasah, or prayer houses, since each village contains one or more of these. Villages are located in the midst of the inhabitants' rice fields.
Acehnese are considered among the most zealous of all Indonesians in their Islamic beliefs. They are especially concerned with the pilgrimage to Mecca, the tithe, and the fast during Ramadan. There also survive traditional beliefs in the supernatural, as well as magic associated with agriculture and female shamanism.
Jayawardena, Chandra (1977). "Women and Kinship in Aceh Besar, Northern Sumatra." Ethnology 16:21-38.
Reid, Anthony (1979). The Blood of the People: Revolution and the End of Traditional Rule in Northern Sumatra. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press.
Siegel, James T. (1979). Shadow and Sound: The Historical Thought of a Sumatran People. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
DANIEL STROUTHES
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